


paper/plastic

by Rosyredlipstick



Series: AU Solangelo Fic [22]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types
Genre: College AU, Fluff, Gas Station AU, Humor, Lots o friendship, M/M, Mentions of drugs and alcohol, Mild Language, Other, Romance, Roommates, Suggestive Themes, snack foods galore
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-04
Updated: 2018-06-04
Packaged: 2019-05-16 19:37:32
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 14,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14817609
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rosyredlipstick/pseuds/Rosyredlipstick
Summary: When Nico di Angelo's favorite, most dependable gas station for midnight snacks etcetera is shut down due to some incredibly far-fetched and completely unnecessary health code violations, he's forced to start going to the sister franchise down the street, where a certain blond clerk seems to always be working (like, almost in an unhealthy way).Also, on a definitely unrelated note, Nico now volunteers to do any & all gas station convenience store runs. Leo —stop laughing.-Or, a love story told through many, many gas station receipts, a glass jar, bottled caramel, andmaybesome other stuff.German Translation by kastanea!





	paper/plastic

Nico is in his third year of university when the Stop N’Go on the corner of Beech Street and Main closes its doors for good.

He’s also in his third year of university when he, Piper, and Leo are bonded forever through their grief.

“My midnight slushie,” Nico lamented soulfully, spread out on him and Jason’s shitty couch. There was a stain near his foot that they all swore changed color with the weather. At the moment, it was an ugly orange, matching the upcoming autumn season. Vaguely, Nico thought that was nice of the couch to do. “And the shame doughnuts, all _gone.”_

“Oh gods,” Piper groaned out, buried in a large comforter stolen off Nico’s bed. “The shame doughnuts were my _favorite_ part of a hungover Sunday morning.”

“And the quarter lighters,” Leo was in near tears, “the cheapest in town. Always available, no questions asked, as many as you wanted.”

“Guys…” Jason was standing above them, his hands on his hips, his voice the tone of exasperation. “There’s another one like, two miles down the road. You guys _know_ this.”

“It’s not the same,” Nico scowled at him, “The mold stains! The broken tile flooring! Bertha, always yelling at us to hurry so she could go on her smoke break!”

“The four health violations make so much sense when you put it like that,” Jason remarked thoughtfully, throwing himself on the couch with the rest of them. Leo and Piper, still slightly tear-eyed from their newfound knowledge, instantly shifted closer to their new companion. Jason, smiling happily, only opened up his arms for them to curl under.

“No more heat-lamp churros,” Piper added mournfully, burrowing her face into Jason’s shoulder.

“With the half-frozen chocolate filling,” Leo was blinking back tears.

Jason sighed, “That place was horrible. I think we all need to admit that.”

“Of course we know that,” Nico frowned, “that was the point. The shitty Stop N’Go down the street. It was _our place.”_

“We’ll just get a new place,” Jason tried, much to the gasps following. He rolled his eyes, “You’re all being ridiculous.”

“We’re _grieving,_ ” Leo wiped at his eyes, “This is a sad day in the di Angelo-Grace-Valdez-McLean household.”

Piper frowned, “Why does Nico get to be first?”

“Because I pay the rent,” Nico answered which, okay, his father paid the rent. But _still._

“We should go alphabetically,” Piper only shot back, “di Angelo-Grace-McLean-Valdez household.”

“We’re not fighting about this,” Jason interrupted before Leo and Piper could get into it, “And also, it’s an apartment. Not a household.”

“Home is not a place, it’s the people in _it_.”

“Shut the fuck up, Valdez.”

“Uh!” Leo’s hand came over his heart, “Jason, my love, do you hear this vulgar conversation? I thought we outlawed that!”

“Leo’s right,” Leo preened at Jason’s words, “put some money in the jar, Nico.”

Nico sighed, standing from their pile of sadness, and walking over to the counter. The glass jar covered in doodles and sad faces was nearly full. Nico took two bills out of his wallet, stuffing the first one in before looking back to Leo.

“Fuck you again,” Nico told him, already stuffing the second bill into the opening, laughing at the look of mock outrage on his face.

Jason gave him a disapproving look, even as he allowed Nico to return to his space on the couch.

“I’ll still never go there,” He promised, returning to their earlier conversation as his hand came to his chest. “I’ll never betray Bertha like that.” With overexaggerated tears in their eyes, Piper and Leo mournfully agreed.

Jason couldn’t help but roll his eyes.

* * *

**bad boi supreme:** we need stuff

>> what kind of stuff

 **bad boi supreme:** stuff on the list

>> would i be asking what kind of stuff if i had the list

 **bad boi supreme:** IMG.JPG

>> jfc. do u really need everything on this list? cant u do yr own shopping?

 **bad boi supreme:** can't you spell out your words? aren’t you an English major?

>> i’m tired of using my words.

>> ugh. u owe me.

 **bad boi supreme:** ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) get everything on the list and i definitely will

 **bad boi supreme:** ;-)

>> stop.

>> and don’t give your emojis fucking noses.

 **bad boi supreme:** :-(

 **bad boi supreme:** dollar in the fuck jar

 **bad boi supreme:** wait shit

 **bad boi supreme:** ah fuck it

 **bad boi supreme:** ;-)

Nico sighed, closing the messaging app, and clicked over to Maps. With surrender deep in his bones, he began to look up the directions to the nearest Stop N’Go.

* * *

The new Stop N’Go wasn’t….horrible, he guessed.

But still. It wasn’t _home._ The slushie machines looked too new and shiny, and the rolling hot dogs under the heat lamp actually looked fresh. Even the _walls_ looked cleaner. Was the other building painted his same shade of beige? Nico had always thought it was simply an uneven, pasty light brown.

It wasn’t horrible, which honestly quite ruined it a bit.

He loaded up his basket, sighing at the variety of items on the list. Of course. _Of course_ , they would send him shopping for this stuff. He should just get it over with. He collected the stuff as fast as he could, just wanting to get home and throw the items at Leo’s head, when he paused in line at the checkout counter.

A young guy, his age, punched away at the buttons of the register, looking bored as he ripped off the paper receipt for the customer ahead of them.

The guy was cute. Much cuter than 60-year old Bertha, who had always manned the counter and yelled at them in a chain-smoker’s rasp. But, that could have always been due to Nico’s general age, mentality, and gayness.

This...was unexpected. The cute guy — not the gayness.

It was his turn, and he had no choice but to step forward, with his mental cursing of his roommates going up at least 75% percent. He began to set his items on the counter.

Tampons — Piper’s brand, which he had bought time and time again.

Duct tape — probably for whatever crazy, maybe illegal, thing Leo was currently working on.

A small tub of vaseline — which Piper insisted she used for her skin which Nico had no interest whatsoever in challenging.

A loaf of bread — the most reasonable request, most likely made by Jason.

Sour patch kids/watermelons —a request also most definitely by Jason.

Caramel — because Nico liked his hot chocolate with an outrageous amount of whipped cream and sugar, or so Jason claimed.

And, maybe worst of all, a ten pack of Trojans — which Nico hadn’t even bothered to consider which roommate they were for.

The clerk cut a look up to him as Nico finished setting down the last, most embarrassing item in between them.

“This isn’t…” Nico sighed, a faint blush in place that _never_ would have happened with Bertha. “This isn’t what it looks like.”

The clerk — Will, his nametag said — cocked his head to the side, looking down at the array of items.

“I have...roommates?” Because it was, in fact, all their fault.

He finally gave Nico something other than a bored look, a bit of amusement flashing in his eyes.

“I work the midnight shift in a college town gas station,” Will gave him a teasing look as he began to scan his items, “Trust me, I’ve seen worse.”

Nico let out a breath, a bit relieved, before giving the boy a curious look. “What else have you seen that’s so much worse?”

“Ah,” Will gave him, strangely, a teasing look. “You see, revealing that would violate my clerk-customer privacy clause. Sorry bout that.”

“Really,” Nico gave him a dull look, “a privacy clause.”

Will hummed, looking like he was enjoying himself, “Yup,” he popped the end the word, “it’s a serious, very real thing.”

“I believe you,” Nico told him, despite his tone making sure that Will knew he absolutely didn’t. Finishing up scanning his items, Will read him his total and took Nico’s debit card without a word.

He handed back the card with the receipt wrapped around the plastic, a small grin in place. “Thanks for coming to Stop N’Go for all your on the go needs,” Will recited, a smile in his voice. “I’ll see you around.”

“Yeah,” Nico responded, taking the bags. “I’ll see you around.”

...maybe this Stop N’Go wasn’t completely horrible.

He could _not_ tell his roommates about this. The teasing would never stop.

* * *

A week later, unsurprisingly, Nico found himself back at the store, mostly because he had loudly volunteered for the weekly trip.

“Condom and caramel dude,” Will grinned at him from behind the counter, and Nico was stupidly grateful the store was empty. “What can I do for you? The whipped cream is in the back fridge, you know, if you’re looking for it.”

“The condoms were for my roommates, and I just wanted some for my hot chocolate.” Nico’s cheeks were burning bright, “And please, _please_ don’t call me that.”

“Oh?” Will leaned in, and even though the dim, crappy light of the gas station should not have been so flattering, his golden hair was nearly glowing. “What should I call you then?”

“Name’s Nico,” Nico gave him an amused look, “and if you’re gonna be in the north, you have to say it the correct way. _Car-mal_ . Not _Care-a-mel_.”

Will made a face, “That’s wrong.”

 _“You’re_ wrong,” and hey, Nico never claimed to be mature. Will only scoffed, amused despite everything, and went back to writing down on the clipboard in front of him.

Nico grabbed what was on the list — a carton of eggs, a few pints of Ben & Jerry’s, some microwavable popcorn for Thursday, some dish and laundry soap, a pack of toilet paper, and a bottle of vegetable oil. All very normal items to buy. Jason made sure of it.

Will seemed to notice this as well, as he scanned through the items and refrained from commenting on them other than an amused glance or two shot at Nico himself. It felt almost like they had an inside joke, which was ridiculous considering they hardly knew each other. Ridiculous.

Nico handed over his card at the total price of everything, took the receipt once Will had processed the payment and turned to leave.

Before he could though, Will had to throw out a, “Bye _Care-a-mel!”_

Nico sighed loudly, loud enough for the other boy to clearly hear, as he left the store.

And Nico was almost...fond. Maybe.

Maybe.

But they _definitely_ had an inside joke.

* * *

“How’s cute boy?” Piper didn’t even look up from her phone.

Nico swept past her into the kitchen, the numerous plastic bags hanging from his arms from his most recent Stop N’Go visit. Pop tarts, a box of cookies, hot sauce, and coffee grounds, this time. They needed to start making better grocery lists. He’d suggest this, if he didn’t want to risk cutting down on his gas station visits, which he would never actually admit to, even under oath.

He continued to completely ignore her other than a casual. “Who?”

“The hot ass clerk Jason saw you flirting with when he stopped to get gas,” Piper replied nonchalantly, and Nico froze as he began to unload the bags. She continued, “I assume that’s why you’ve been volunteering to do all the Stop N’Go runs.”

Nico let go of his tense shoulders, letting them drop before turning to face the girl. “Don’t tell Leo,” he said through clenched teeth, “he’ll tease me forever.”

Piper finally looked up from her phone only to give him a sympathetic look. “Oh Nico,” she wrinkled her nose, “do you truly believe I haven’t already told the entire groupchat?” Her look was almost one of pity, “I thought we knew each other better than that.”

Nico paused, “No. _No.”_

Just then, with either perfect or horrible timing, his phone began to ring. On the screen, Hazel’s icon grinned back at him.

Shit. He knew he shouldn’t have blocked the groupchat notifications, despite how annoying they remained.

They texted _constantly._

Sighing, his eyes squeezed shut, he answered the phone.

* * *

Incoming call: **the best sister in the entire world** (phone)

ENDED: 22 MINUTES

 **the best sister in the entire world:** :-)

>> you’ve been texting leo, havent u.

 **the best sister in the entire world:** Of course. Why? :-)

>> nothing.

**the best sister in the entire world: ❤️ ❤️ ❤️**

**the best sister in the entire world:** No answer?

 **the best sister in the entire world:** ….

 **the best sister in the entire world:** :-(

>> sigh

>> ❤️

 **the best sister in the entire world:** :-) !!

* * *

In times of trouble, mother mary came to him and said the following, _nico —_ and what the fuck, he wasn’t even religious — _nico, grab all the energy drinks you can carry and down them like a shot if you want to survive this week. do it, boy._

And who was he to go against holy word? Or, his holy hallucination. Whatever.

Will gave him a judgemental look as he carefully and slowly set each and every can between them, his arms feeling odd and numb with the sudden lack of weight. At least Nico’s eye was hardly twitching anymore. Improvement was on the distant horizon.

“Nine energy drinks,” Will counted them up, scanning each of them as he went, making a face once he was done. He glanced up, a spark of humor in his eyes. “Midterms?”

Nico let go of his breath, leaning heavily onto the counter and only nodded sadly. His eyes flickered down to the candy shelf, considering. He couldn’t actually remember the last time he ate something solid.

Will gave him the stink eye as Nico knocked down an array of brightly colored candy bars onto the check out space and sighed.

Nico could only shrug helplessly. “A boy needs his dinner.”

Will paused in his motions, as he counted up the bars to type into the machine. “This is your...dinner?”

“And lunch,” Nico’s eyes fluttered closed for a moment, “and probably tomorrow’s breakfast.”

Will’s face was one of horror. After a moment, he seemed to decide on something, as he began shaking his head. “No. No, I cannot abide in this.”

Nico lifted his head, giving the other boy a questioning look. “What?”

Will swept the candy bars and energy drinks into a bag, setting it on the counter just out of Nico's reach, before taking a deep breath like he was disappointed in himself. He turned out of the counter, entering the shop area.

“Any allergies?” Will asked over his shoulder, like that question was in any way relevant to this conversation.

Nico blinked at him, his brain slowly processing it all. “Um, ibuprofen.”

Will nodded, a quick brisk movement, and turned away to begin gathering what he needed. Nico only stared at him, his mind attempting to catch up, but still wasn’t fully caught up when Will returned back behind the counter.

Will dropped a few of those pre-made breakfast sandwiches on the counter, thumbing them into the machine. “I’m sorry, but I can’t stand by and watch you do this to your body. I refuse.”

Nico was already fumbling for this wallet at the register rang out, but Will only held up his hand.

“You have to promise me you’ll eat them,” Now, Will was finally holding out his plastic bag of candy and energy, as well as a warm paper bag weighed down by the sandwiches. “Just eat something, seriously. Studying doesn’t do any good if you’re dead.”

“Promise,” Nico handed over his card and grabbed for the bag, their hands brushing. Will seemed to give it no attention, and maybe it was the hallucinations finally kicking in fully, but it felt like his hand was burning from the contact.

“You better not die,” Will instructed him, “who else am I gonna tease?”

Hiding his smile in his sleeve, Nico shrugged and headed for the door, Will’s voice yelling more affirmations at him as he did so.

* * *

“I’m honestly surprised to see you like, alive.” Will dryly remarked a week later, when Nico was looking much better and having showered at least three times more than a week before.

“Me too,” His chest had started feeling, how could he phrase this, explodey after the third drink. Mother mary apparently hadn’t been leading him right, and Jason evidently agreed as he hid the rest of the cans somewhere in the apartment (under his bed, definitely. That was where Jason hid all their fun purchases during stressful times — Nico’s sugary energy drinks, Piper’s trusty baggie of weed, Leo’s numerous dime lighters — and it was more fun to pretend none of them knew about it).

Will gave him a suspicious look, “No energy drinks?”

“No energy drinks.” Nico agreed, setting the single jug of milk down between them along with a few other items. He and his roommates didn’t even pretend who was volunteering for the Stop N’Go runs anymore, just sending their apartment needs straight to the group chat. “I don’t think my heart could take a single can more.”

“Good,” Will looked strangely pleased with that. A teasing look came over his face. “Gotta keep that heart in tack.” He peeled a sticker off a sheet, pressing it to the jug. “You know, I once read that eating an apple in the morning wakes you up just as well as a cup of coffee. Maybe you should try that out.”

Nico was almost offended at that advice. He was _Italian._ Coffee streamed alongside his _blood._

“Tell that to my caffeine addiction,” Nico told him instead, taking the jug. Will held out his receipt, their hands touching as Nico grabbed for it.

He could, at least, blame the remaining summer heat on his burning cheeks. That’s what he told himself, anyway, as he rushed out of the gas station with the cold jug hanging from one hand.

His roommates were totally going to make fun of him. If he wasn’t so slightly fond of them, there was no way he’d take it from them.

He rushed up their few apartment steps — he knew it in his heart to insist on a ground floor apartment but Jason had somehow talked him into a third floor walk up, which, _what the hell_ — and let himself into the apartment quickly, dropping his boots off at the door.

He threw the bag on the counter and the milk in the fridge — Piper had used the last of it in her morning coffee when they ran out of creamer — and surveyed their living room. All three of them were home, or so their filled up side table up by the door said so with their wallets, keys, pocket gum stacked on it like a losing game of Jenga. He peered into their bedroom door — the door already being cracked open, he wasn’t stupid enough to attempt so otherwise — and wrinkled his nose.

He leaned against their doorway, giving them all a dull look, or at least to the remaining awake ones. “Do you really all have to share a bed, or do you just actually need to be this codependent and gross?”

“We like it,” Jason was smiling lazing in the middle of the bed, Piper and Leo each pushed up against his sides. Their California King mattress took up more than half the room, but no one seemed to mind that fact.

Nico scoffed at the other man’s words, rolling his eyes, but paused as he began to turn out of the doorway.

An arm extended from the bed, inviting. Nico gave Leo a suspicious look, crossing his arms.

“C’mon babe,” Leo grinned, his curls rumpled from the pillow, his hand still stretched out reaching towards him. “There’s always room for you, dollface.”

“Stop flirting,” Nico sighed despite letting himself be pulled into the pile. Piper always blasted the A.C. and it was cold in their apartment, okay? That was all. Shared body heat and all.

Leo turned from Jason’s arm, burying his face into Nico’s shoulder instead. “Smells good. New shampoo?”

“It’s weird you noticed,” Nico complained, settling deeper into the mess of blankets and warmth. “Why are you so weird and gross.”

“Macklemore didn’t die in that thrift shop for you to disrespect me like this,” Leo muttered, his hand coming up to play with Nico’s hair. Nico didn’t pull away.

Nico could somewhat understand why the three of them preferred to bundle up together. This was surprisingly nice.

At his side, Leo reached over his shoulder to paw at the cell phone on the bedside table. Rolling his eyes, Nico swatted him away and simply passed it over, returning to his previous position. After clicking the phone on, Leo let out an annoyed groan.

“I have class,” Leo sighed loudly, not so much so to wake up Piper on Jason’s other side but enough to show his displeasure, and slowly detaching from the pile of blankets and bodies. From the pile, a faint whine.

Leo grinned, gently pulling off Jason’s persistent hand. “Calculus calls, love. I’ll be back soon, don’t worry.” He pressed a quick peck to Jason’s forehead, smoothing back Piper’s hair from her lax face, patting Nico’s ass as he peeled himself away.

Nico scoffed, flipping over to his back to watch the other boy as he rummaged around the room.

“I’m not apart of this,” Nico tried to affirm, “I’m really not. I’m trying to get gas station clerk ass, I’m not doing this.”

“Sure, babe.” Leo pat his back as he pulled up his jeans, grinning. “Whatever you say.”

“Jason,” there was an obvious whine in Nico’s voice. “Tell him I’m not apart of your weird codependent gross relationship.”

Jason didn’t even bother muttering out a sleepy response, only winding his arm around Nico‘s waist and pulling him to his chest to fill Leo’s previous space, still warm.

Nico allowed the action, giving Leo’s grinning face a glare. “Not. Apart.”

“Why don’t you just ask him out,” Jason muttered against the back of his neck, probably still half-asleep. “You’re there like, twice a week.”

Nico scoffed, “I can’t hit on someone while they’re at work. That’s like, how-not-to-be-a-douche 101.”

“Covered in the syllabus, even,” Leo added on helpfully, bucking his belt.

Nico nodded to the other boy, “See?”

“Just be super polite about it,” Jason hadn’t bothered to open his eyes yet, “give him like, a way to say no without boxing him in.”

Nico shoved his face into the pillow which, annoyingly, still smelt like Leo. Muttering against the fabric, he ignored Leo low laugh. _“Maybe.”_

Gods, he was starting to hate that word.

* * *

He wasn’t proud of this visit. At all. Will could probably read the shame on his face, which would explain his dumbfounded expression as Nico dumped everyone between them.

“...McDonald's is closed.” He said in lieu of an explanation. He didn’t really have an explanation for all... _this._

Will gave him a pained look as he surveyed the items, “You say that like that and _this -”_ he swept a hand over Nico’s collection of shame snacks, “are related in any way.”

“I…” Nico had no response to that, “I need it.”

“I don’t think anyone has _ever_ needed Funyuns, grape soda, a slim jim, and raw cookie dough,” that pained look was back, “at least tell me you’re planning on _baking_ the cookie dough.”

Nico briefly thought of the raw intensity in which he usually devoured raw cookie dough. He usually didn’t even bother to grab a spoon, it only slowed him down. It never ceased to amaze — and heavily disgust, in Jason’s case — his roommates.

“I’m….planning on baking them,” He added on slowly, completely unconvincing.

“I shouldn’t be aiding you in this,” Will was sighing, looking forlorn as he began scanning the few items. “I’m in pre-med and like, the first rule of medical school is you _shouldn’t_ aid people in harming themselves.”

“Or kill anyone,” Nico added on helpfully, watching as Will began to bag his few items. He could almost _taste_ the grape soda on his tongue, all perfectly bubbly and sugary. Gods, he needed this.

Will shot him an evil eye, pointing at him with the tube of cookie dough, “I feel like this violates both of those statements.”

“At least they hit all the food groups,” Nico added with a grin, “Vegetables, fruit, meat, and wheat. That’s good, right?”

Will blinked down at the mess of items on the counter, shaking his head with wide eyes. “I...I can’t believe you even said that. I’m... _.horrified.”_

Nico hummed in amusement, “So will my roommate be,” He could already see that particular look of horror on Jason’s face. The other boy would totally be telling on him to Hades in their weekly phone call, but hey. Nico could deal with it as long as he got his snacks.

Nico paid quickly but lingered as Will gave him a look, “Please eat like, a single vegetable.” His voice was the picture of exasperation, “Please. You’re no use to the Stop N’Go franchise if you die an early death because of your horrible diet.”

Nico hummed, “A single vegetable?” He held up the bag of Funyuns, “I think I’ve already got that covered.” Ignoring Will’s sputtered noises of protest, Nico couldn’t help but crackle with laughter the entire short drive home, still chuckling a bit as he walked through the front door. Will was totally going to remember that. Maybe _Funyuns_ would be their _always._

Nico was still fainting smiling about it as he laid out all his snacks on the coffee table, flipping on Hulu to load up, and waiting for the rest of his roommates to float in the living room as it seemed they always did as the sound of snacks and TV. It didn’t take long, but when she arrived, Piper made no move to claim the seat to his right as she usually did. Nico gave her a curious look.

Instead, Piper took a bite of the raw cookie dough sticking out of the top of the tube and gave Nico a look. “Get dressed.”

Nico hugged his Funyuns to his chest, knowing his slim jim was safe from the girl but the iconic yellow chips being completely up to debate. At her words, he loosened his grip a bit and gave her a confused look. “What? What do you mean?”

“After midterms celebration,” She walked towards the kitchen, wrapping the dough over with its plastic and throwing it in the fridge. Nico scowled at the motion and crossed his arms, even as she continued to speak. “We got invited to a party and you’re coming, di Angelo. The guys are getting ready right now.”

 _“Nooo,”_ Nico was already groaning out, even as he watched Piper begin to put away the rest of his snacks spread out on the coffee table. “Can’t we have a night in? We still have to get through our next season of _Brooklyn 99._ ”

Piper gave him a look, “We can do that anytime. And you’re gonna get moody if we leave you alone on a Saturday night. Anyways,” she flipped her ponytail back, “you should just stop fighting because you’re definitely gonna come with us.”

Nico frowned. There weren’t many battles against the girl he could win, but he was a master at compromising with her. “I’m leaving by nine,” He told her, “I’ll take an Uber.”

“Ten,” Piper told him, crossing her arms and giving him a critical look. “And you don’t have to drink, but you have to socialize with at least two people.”

Nico thought it over, “One of them can be Reyna.”

She sighed, “One of them can be Reyna,” she agreed, “ _but_ you have to dance with us for a song.”

Nico thought it over. Going out with them wasn’t that bad, and he usually did have more fun with them than just sitting at home and eating through their cabinet. _Buuuut_ it _was_ fun to make Piper work for it.

“Deal,” Nico finally agreed, standing with false severity. “I guess I’ll go get ready then.”

“Wear your good jeans,” Piper shot him a grin, heading towards her shared bedroom. “With that shirt.”

Before she could further specify, Nico rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I know the one.”

It was, undoubtedly, a favorite article of clothing that Piper and Leo joked of constantly. Mostly because of the fact it was barely that — dark, stretchy fabric that was translucent under light but tight and forever in the darkness. It was comfortable, at least, considering one or both of them usually insisted he wear it when they went out. He dressed quickly, messing with the too-tight jeans he knew fit him well despite how they resisted against most movement. When he came back into the living room, Jason was on the couch, leaning into a small mirror balanced on the coffee table.

One of Jason’s eyes were already done up with a thin sleek line of dark eyeliner, Piper’s borrowed pen in his hand as he frowned down at the slightly uneven wing.

That must have been what sold it, for Nico at least. Jason, in eyeliner with a DD already in place to take them all safely home, was a force to be reckoned with.

Nico huffed as he turned away, already texting Reyna his complaints, but at least knew this night would be interesting.

It only took a little bit longer for the rest of them to get ready, they had evidently started before Piper even bothered to let Nico know about his evening plans. But their ride over to the frat house — probably Percy’s with how Leo and Piper were talking comfortably about it — was cut short with much too-soon stop.

Nico looked up from his phone, “What are we doing?” He already knew, even before he looked up, seeing as how he knew his roommates extremely well. There was no way they could resist the temptation.

Piper was reapplying her light colored lipstick in the passenger mirror, “Percy wants asked us to pick up some extra cups and a case of water,” she turned to give him an obvious look. “Are you gonna go? Or should I send in Leo?”

Nico didn’t answer, only unbuckling his seatbelt and climbing out of the backseat. As he walked away, someone — Leo, most definitely — let out a loud wolf whistle. Without turning back, he flipped him off. He waved at Will as he entered — was he always here? Didn’t he go home? Like, at all? — and went straight for the miscellaneous aisle, ignoring the crack of metal as Will unexpectedly dropped something — a row of coins it sounded like — on the counter.

He gathered the supplies quickly, half convinced they didn’t even need to stop, they just wanted to watch the exchange through the window which they absolutely were doing.

Will wasn’t even bothering to be subtle with his looking. “Going somewhere?”

Nico set the case of water down on the counter, the cups following. “Party. My roommates dragged me along.”

“Hmm,” Will hummed, his eyes lingering on Nico’s arms — more specifically, how Nico’s arms had looked with the case of water weighing them down.

Nico had never been more happy he and Jason never skipped arm day.

Will scanned the few items, probably the least amount of items Nico had ever come through with, and kept his eyes low the entire time. Nico, surprisingly, enjoyed every moment of it.

Will fumbled with his card for a second after muttering out the complete price, which made Nico grin a bit, which only made Will fumble even more. It was like the circle of life, but with gay. Even better.

“See you around,” Will told him after he finally managed to give Nico his card and receipt, his eyes still lingering low on Nico. Aware of the attention, Nico didn’t hesitate to pick the case of water back up, turning and shooting a look over his shoulder.

Nico gave him a half-grin, completely aware of how he looked, in those jeans, posed just so, his eyes amused, “See you around.”

“The middle finger totally counts,” Leo singsonged out as Nico climbed back into the car, still messing with his own curls. “Dollar in the jar when you get home.”

“I hate that rule,” he muttered, already mentally putting the dollar bill in his wallet aside.

“Maybe someday you’ll hate it enough to stop saying it,” Jason said, a spark of something in his eyes. Hope, maybe.

Childishly, Nico stuck out his tongue in response, knowing the other man would see it through the rearview mirror. Jason huffed but said nothing further.

The drive was mostly quiet, only interrupted by Piper singing along softly to some low song on the radio, and it was a relaxing enough picture, as Jason smiled softly from the driver’s seat towards Piper, and Leo knee pressed against his own in the small backseat as he continued to run his hands through his already-wild curls.

They still had a bit of a drive to the party. Relaxed and comfortable and surprisingly calm for on his way to a party, Nico closed his eyes and fell asleep.

* * *

By the time they arrived, the party had been in full, complete, ranger swing.

And this was literal — as someone swung violently from a plastic chandelier on the ceiling, a wine bottle tight in one hand, pure recklessness cradled in the other. And after dropping Nico off with a small circle of their friends, his roommates had no hesitation in joining the wild fun.

Leo and Jason were already making out on the dance floor, Leo’s legs wrapped around Jason’s waist as the other boy held him up, and Piper was only a few feet away aiming a ping pong ball towards a row of red solo cups. After she threw her ball her partner — Annabeth, he realized through the hazy, deep smoke — high fived her and yelled in victory. Percy and Grover, on the other side of the table, only groaned at the perfect shot. Thatta girl.

Reyna bumped her hip into his, raising an eyebrow once she got his attention. “Good?”

Nico took a long sip of his drink. Cheap wine, but it wasn’t bad — too sweet if anything. But at the same time, his prior plans for the night  _had_ been downing a small village in calories so. He didn’t have a place to complain.

“Good,” he finally settled on, the alcohol warming his chest, loosening his tense muscles. She nodded, satisfied with this answer, and continued to speak quietly about her latest law exam.  

And at the end of the night, when his throat was raw from laughing, his body aching from dancing, his face sore from grinning, it was good. It was really good.

Fuck, he hated when Piper was right.

....Two dollars for the jar.

* * *

The next morning when Nico came out rubbing his eyes with only a vague hangover, Piper and Leo were already bent over the table, cups of weak coffee in their hands. If Nico could have managed a laugh, he would have crackled at the sight.

“We’re out of coffee grounds,” Leo told him, the bags under his eyes speaking enough for this mindset. “There’s still some left in the pot, but add a container of it to the shopping list.”

Nico nodded, still processing, and poured himself the rest of the pot. It wasn’t much, but it was enough. He’d probably run to the Stop N’Go later just to make sure they had some for tomorrow, considering their grocery shopping wasn’t scheduled until Tuesday. No one in their household would survive the days without it, except maybe —

Nico frowned, looking around. “Where’s Jason?”

Piper yawned into her mug, “Ran out. Leo and I just woke up and the pot was already waiting for us.”

“He’s the best,” Leo breathed out, maybe in awe of the boy in general or just his coffee making skills. Piper nodded in sleepy agreement.

Nico tried to savor his drink, despite the coffee strength far from how he preferred. He was making due, considering how much work it would take to fix it up correctly.

He was almost finished with his cup, Piper and Leo both in similar boats despite starting their own cups before Nico had, when the door swung open, and Jason’s bright, grinning, perpetually never-hungover face grinned at them.

“Morning,” he greeted them all as he moved to the table, giving them each a quick kiss on the head, a plastic bag hanging from his hand. Nico resisted the urge to hiss after Jason pecked on his own head, mostly due to his slightly heavy head and drooping eyes. Before he could even give a half-hearted attempt to do so, Jason settled the paper bag in between them all, the logo of the bag exposed. There was a moment of pause.

“The shame doughnuts!” Leo gasped suddenly, ripping open the paper bag in excitement. “But _how?”_

Jason rolled his eyes, “There’s a Dunkin Doughnuts down the street.” He crossed his arms, “And they’re  _not_ shame doughnuts.”

 _“Shame. Doughnuts.”_ Leo clicked his tongue, “There’s no reason to be embarrassed, my love. Pipes and I love how slutty you get when you’re drunk. Last night was great.”

A rough color climbed up Jason’s neck, despite the fact being common knowledge. “I don’t-”

“You gave a strip tease for the sorority girls handing out drinks,” Piper gave him a sympathetic grin, “Didn’t know you were so passionate about Beyonce, hun. I’ve never heard _Rocket_ like that.”

Jason’s head dropped into his hands, groaning, and even Nico had to crack a grin at that. This happened _every time_. “I - I don’t believe you.”

“Sweetheart,” Leo’s voice made Jason raise his head. “Lift up your shirt.”

Jason blinked, “What?”

Piper _tsked_ in impatience, lifting up the fabric to expose the boy’s tanned abdomen. At the sight, Jason promptly turned a dark red. Nico barked out a sharp laugh.

“Four phone numbers written in sharpie,” Piper observed, “And only one dick drawn. An impressive collection, considering we forced your shirt back on after about ten minutes.”

“I…” Jason was shaking his head, “Anyone want some more coffee to go with the doughnuts?”

“With cream, please!”

Nico grinned at the both of them as Jason retreated, “Are you gonna tell him?”

Piper took a moment to fish a doughnut out of the paper bag, sucking a freckle of sprinkles off her knuckle after a second. “About the several other numbers scrawled across his back?” She pretended to think, “Honestly, it depends how good this coffee is.”

Leo only sighed, his cheeks a mess of pink frosting, the previous mood forgotten. “I _love_ Sundays.”

* * *

The apartment...smelt good.

Not like the apartment smelled bad usually — Jason was pretty adamant on utilizing the chore chart hanging on the fridge — but even from his bedroom, Nico could smell the savory, delicious smell of Leo’s signature cooking. Of course, further investigation was needed.

“You’re making dinner?” Nico cocked his head to the side, walking into the kitchen. Leo didn’t cook often, especially without bragging about it in the group chat. “What’s the occasion?”

Leo shrugged at him without looking over his shoulder as he bent down to inspect the dish in the oven. “It’s the middle of the week, I’m tired of takeout, why not.”

Nico considered that, hopping onto the counter. No doubt, Leo would be swatting him off in a moment, but he could enjoy it while it lasted. “Okay. Sounds good.” Leo apparently found the dish to be thoroughly cooked and flicked off the oven as Nico watched which, honestly, was probably preferably for everyone.

 _Everyone_ remembered the oven pizza incident. Nico _still_ gets glares from their downstairs neighbors.

Leo, with comically large oven mitts hanging off his hands, bent down to pull a large pan from the heated oven, inhaling deeply at the casserole dish. When he looked to Nico, his gaze turned critical enough that Nico hopped off the counter on his own violation. Throwing his mitts to the side, Leo handed him a kitchen knife and gestured to the washed sinkful of veggies. Not even Nico could mess up chopping up vegetables.

“This is a lot of food,” Nico pointed out, shrugging after a moment as he pulled the chopping board from the cabinet and began laying everything out. “Eh, Piper and Jason can probably handle it. But we probably won’t need this salad.” Beginning with the head of lettuce, he began to messily chop it up and throw into the bowl.

“Yes we will,” Leo told him, setting down the pan so he could spoon more sauce over it all. Tofu Enchiladas. God, Nico loved when he made that.

Nico shrugged again, going back to chopping up the vegetables. If Leo wanted to have all that extra salad sitting around, that was fine with him. It wasn’t like anyone but Piper ate the stuff, and they only usually made a big bowl like this when they had -

“Wait,” Nico froze suddenly, his chopping knife hovering still in the air. “You’re - Leo, you’re wearing a clean shirt.” His eyes flickered to the extra large casserole dish, taking up most of the stove space.  “And Jason was cleaning earlier.” He gasped, “And Piper’s _showering_ right now.” His gaze took on one of horror, “This isn’t a regular Wednesday, is it.”  

Leo shot him a wicked grin as horror came over the other boy, but before Nico could get out any more words, the doorbell rang.

“My children!” A voice boomed out through the door before Nico could do anything, like run. “We have arrived!”

Nico turned to the other man, his face blank. “You...invited my parents over. Hades and Persephone — you _told_ them to come here.”

“Of course not,” Leo was quick to reassure him, despite Nico literally being able to hear them through the thin walls. “We invited your whole family!” The voices grew louder as someone, Jason evidently, opened the door with a high noise of excitement.

Nico almost wanted to desperately accuse the other man of a lie. “Why in the world would you _do_ that?”

Leo, shooting a look in the direction where Hades’s and Jason’s voices were drifting from, leaned in to Nico to speak slowly. “Jason was making sad eyes at some Lifetime movie about the joy of family, or something. Pipes and I figured this would cheer him up.” He muttered, “And we knew you’d bolt if we told you, so.” He shrugged, not looking even a bit apologetic.

There was a long moment of silence before Nico huffed out a breath, crossing his arms. “Fine,” he finally conceded, “But they’re out by _eight.”_

Leo patted Nico’s cheek happily, his oven mitts still on, and turned back to his casserole dish. “If you think you can even get your father to even look in the direction of the door before then, I welcome it.”

Which...he wasn’t wrong. Nico frowned. Hades, in the distance, was still loudly gushing to Jason. He should probably go greet him.

He pushed himself off the wall, pausing as he sniffed the air. His gaze shifted over to the counter, and a sharp grin overcame his face.

“You made double white chocolate cookies?” Nico gave the other man an amused look, “So Hazel’s definitely coming?”

Leo perked up at the other girl’s name but stuck his nose in the air nonetheless. “I don’t _just_ make them for her, you know. Persephone likes them too.”

“But they’re _her_ favorite,” Nico told him, grinning. “And I’ve heard you on several occasions calling her your platonic soulmate.”

“And yet, she doesn’t deny it.” Leo flicked a few droplets of water at him, wet from washing his hands off in the sink. “Now stop being rude and go say hello to your family, I’ll be out in a second.”

He gave him a mock salute and turned the corner into the living room, already bracing himself.

And it seemed he was right to do so.

“My son!” Hades exclaimed, physically handing Jason over to Persephone, who handled the adult man with grace. He charged towards Nico, beaming, and swept him up into an embrace.

“Hi Hades,” Nico tried to keep the sigh out of his voice, slightly difficult with Hades pushing the air out of his lungs with his tight squeezing hug. “Nice to see you.”

“Have you been eating?” Hades let him go at an arm’s length only so he could pat him down with concern, “I can feel your bones!”

Nico squirmed away from his hands, “That’s because you’re pressing into my skin.” He rolled his eyes, “That’s where the bones are kept. I don’t know what you expect.”

Piper came out of their bedroom, her hair still wet as she braided it to the side. She and Jason shared a quick kiss before she tucked herself under his arm, smiling slightly. Persephone was still carrying the boy bridal style, but no one involved seemed to have any problem with this. As she arrived, there was another knock on the door. Leo, still in the kitchen, made a loud noise of excitement. Nico, rolling his eyes, opened the door.

“Frank. Hazel.” Nico raised an eyebrow at him, “Were you two invited, or something?”

“Piper told us not to tell,” Hazel told him, shoving a wine bottle in his hands and rushing straight past him. “Where is he?”

“Not even a ‘hello, my dear brother, how are you?’” Nico muttered, almost dropping the slick bottle before Frank swept in and grabbed it. Nico gave him a thankful look.

“Hello, my dear brother, how are you?” Frank grinned, still holding the bottle. “Is that good?”

Nico gave him a mock suspicious look, “It’d be better if you helped me open this bottle of red. Gods know I’ll need a glass or three to get through tonight.”

Frank laughed goodnaturedly, as he always did, and took away the bottle into the kitchen, probably to find the opener and some cups. He was good like that.

Nico turned back to their, _ugh,_ guests and wasn’t even a bit surprised by the scene in front of him. He sighed.

“You made my cookies!” Hazel was beaming as Leo held her at an arm's length before throwing herself in for another hug. “My favorite!”

“Only for you,” Leo grinned down at her, completely ignoring the smug look Nico threw him.

Nico rolled his eyes, amused. Frank swept back into the room, a few glasses in one hand, the uncorked bottle in the other.

“And hello to Frank as well,” he said so loudly, shooting a look to where Hazel and Leo were still hugging, moving to help Frank distribute the glasses. Frank shot him a grateful look.

“Don’t mind them,” Frank added on, a warm smile in place. “They’ll be at it for the next hour, at least. The separation has been hard on them.”

“Oh, so I’ve heard.” There was a sigh in Nico’s words, “Having to see each other only twice a week instead of every day. So difficult.”

“I’m never signing up for classes without consulting you ever again,” Leo declared into Hazel’s neck. “I’ve learned from my foolish mistakes.”

“Aw,” Hades’s hands were folded together, his eyes shining. “Aren’t they just so cute?”

“So cute,” Persephone agreed, amusement in her voice as she hung off his father. She had let Jason to his feet a few moments ago, and he still seemed amazed with the ease Persephone had taken his compete weight. If he was honest, so was Nico. Piper, if anything, looked impressed — which was probably dangerous.

“We should give them a moment,” Frank gave the Leo and Hazel a fond look, leading them all over to the dining room table. “They’ve got some catching up to do.”

Which apparently they did, as they spoke quickly with and over each other, sharps barks of laughter breaking up their fast, hardly understandable words. They had literally seen each other three days ago, and yet here they were, nearly teary like they had almost lost the other away at war.

“Okay,” Nico clapped his hands together the best we could, the wine glass in his hand restricting the full movement. “Dinner?”

The enchiladas, at least, made up for the surprise event. That, and the company. Not that Nico would ever admit it.

* * *

“Hey, is Jason home?”

Nico didn’t even look up from his laptop screen, “He got called into work. Should be back soon if -” Nico cut himself off as he glanced up. At the sight of them, he could already feel a headache forming at his temples. “What is that.”

Leo gasped dramatically, “You poor soul! Have you never seen a -”

“Of course I know what it is,” Nico frowned, “I mean, what is _it_ doing in my apartment.”

“Our apartment,” Leo corrected happily, “shouldn’t have let us on the lease, di Angelo.”

“Not my fault you two forced your way into a package deal with Jason,” he muttered, pushing his laptop to the side so he could cross his arms.

Piper was giggling softly, staring down at her folded arms with glee. It was definitely ruining the vibe he was trying to give off.

Nico sighed, dropping his arms and standing. He gave them a judgemental look, “You guys went for churros,“ he made a gesture of frustration, “so where the hell did you get a cat?”

“She was outside the taco place in a box!” Leo leaned in closer to Piper’s hands, cooing. “We couldn’t just leave her there!”

Nico frowned, “There’s a pet shelter by the university. I think they’re still open.”

Both Piper and Leo gasped, casting him a betrayed look.

“We can’t just drop her off there!” Piper was nearly scandalized, “We’ve _bonded.”_

“You’ve had it for like, half an hour. Max.”

Piper held up her hands. Two pairs of big brown eyes peered up at him. “ _Bonded.”_

Nico sighed hugely, “We don’t even _have_ anything for a cat. And the lease says -”

“Just look at her,” Leo gestured, “what do you see?”

Nico sighed, his eyes flickering over to Piper’s hands.

“It’s….fat,” Nico poked it in its side. A low purr started up. “And big. Why is it so fat?”

“She’s perfect,” Piper and Leo said in unison, rubbing their hands over its tan fur. Piper leaned forward to let the cat to the ground, despite its satisfaction in her arms. “And what I see is a poor, helpless cat that needs a home, one we are _perfectly able_ to provide.”

Nico wished Jason was here — he was the most rational out of any of them in their trio. He would be able to talk some sense into them. “Let’s see what Jason’ll say.” He finally contended, keeping a suspicious eye on the cat as it began sniffling around his stacks of books.

The both of them shared a victorious look at that. Leo fell to the ground, laying on his stomach so he could see eye to eye with the cat.

“She’s probably gonna get hungry soon,” Piper declared despite getting comfortable on the couch, looking like she was making no movement to rectify that problem.

Piper and Leo both shot him expectant looks. Nico sighed, somewhat in defeat.

“Like you said, we have no cat supplies.” Leo fluttered his eyelashes, looking frankly quite ridiculous. “And I know the Stop N’ Go has some of the basics. I could always go if you really don’t want too…”

“You didn’t even get the churros,” he muttered, already reaching for his keys. “And don’t bond with it _anymore_ than you have already.”

Neither of them made any attempt to agree with his statement, which was just frankly rude at this point.

* * *

Nico dumped the supplies on the counter and sighed. He didn’t even both hiding his exhaustion. There was too much of it. There was more exhaustion than Nico at this point.

Will’s eyes lit up, “Cat food? I didn’t know you had a cat!”

Nico sighed once more, “I didn’t.”

Will gave him an amused look as he began to scan the pile. “Oh?”

Nico leaned against the counter in defeat, his head falling into his hands. “Leo and Piper — two of my roommates — found a cat. So apparently, for the moment, we have a cat.”

“Do you…like cats?” Will tried, bagging a few of his items.

“I’ve only interacted with two cats in my life,” Nico winced, “and I have scars from both of them.”

“Ouch,” Will gave him an overexaggerated wince, “Good luck, I guess. Third time’s the charm.”

Nico took the bag with minimal blushing as their hands brushed, which, improvement.

“Here’s hoping,” he sighed, not having all the time he wished for a longer conversation with the other boy. If he didn’t get home soon enough, who knows what Leo and Piper were gonna do.

He rushed back to the apartment, only slightly grumpy he allowed Jason to take the car for the day considering the added time with walking the few blocks, and let himself in without much fuss.

Already knowing, he stuck his head into their bedroom, rolling eyes. “You didn’t bond with it more, did you?”

“We named her Churro!” Leo told him instead, holding up the heavy cat excitedly, “Isn’t she adorable?”

“We were on our way to get churros when we found her, so it fits.” Piper shrugged, reaching out one hand to smooth her palm over the pair of fuzzy tan ears. More purring. She settled the cat on one of their fluffier blankets, cooing happily, before following the Leo and Nico out into the living room. Nico set down the plastic bags — the many plastic bags — and began sorting through all the supplies. At their excited noises, already high-pitched with ideas they had for the cat, Nico made a loud noise of annoyance.

Nico sighed, “Fuck you guys,” he groaned, already knowing without looking they would both be pointing to the jar. He took out a dollar bill and passed it over, his eyes still rolled to the ceiling. “We can’t have a cat! Our lease says no pets!”

Piper gave him an amused look, “We kept _you,_ didn’t we?”

Nico spluttered in offense. “This is  _my_ apartment! If anything, I’m allowing you guys to live here, which makes _you guys_ the pets!”

 _“Oh-ho-ho,”_ Leo grinned widely, “is that a proposal, di Angelo? Do you want me to be your little pet?”  

_“Oh my god.”_

“Are you really gonna break your best friend’s heart by stealing his boyfriend?” Piper gave him a disapproving look. “That’s low, Nico.”

“What’s low?” They all looked to the front door, which had opened under the noise of their loud words, at Jason standing in the doorway, emptying his pockets on the side table with a curious look. Nico breathed a sigh of relief.

“Jason,” He started, giving them both looks. “You’re not gonna believe what they’ve done -”

“Wait!” Piper cut him off, jumping forward to grab her boyfriend’s hand and pulling him towards their bedroom. “We want to show you something!”

Before Nico could protest, Piper fully pulled the other man into their bedroom doorway and paused, letting Jason take in the scene. His shoulders went tight — always a tell for Jason. They all waited for his reaction which, thankfully, only took a few quiet moments.

“....Is that a cat,” Jason’s voice was a breath, his eyes wide. “Is that a cat on our bed.”

Leo and Piper shared a grin, “We found her by the taco place.”

“They named it Churro,” Nico added, hoping that Jason’s trademark rational streak would be making an appearance.  

Jason’s eyes were wide, his hands a tight grip on his chest. _“Churro,”_ he breathed out, “I love churros.”

Nico could see where this was heading, and the blood beginning to drain out of his face. “ _No_  -”

“I love her,” Jason was nearly sobbing, falling to his knees so he was eye level with the mattress. “She’s so furry, oh my god.”

“We know how much you love cats,” Piper shot Nico a devious grin, “we _had_ to bring her home.”

Those...bastards. Sneaky, sneaky bastards.

Honestly, Nico had to respect that to a certain point.

Jason reached out a careful hand, letting the cat sniff at it for a moment. Nico, and the others, held their breath.

Churro, having absolutely no regard for Nico’s desperate want, flipped over onto its back to expose its furry tummy. Jason let out another sob.

“She’s beautiful,” Jason told them all as he ran a gentle hand over Churro’s body. “You guys found her? She needs a home.”

“One that we are able to provide,” Piper began, not even hiding her smug look directed at Nico. “She was in a box.”

Jason’s face began one of horror, though his hand was no less gentle than it was before. If anything, it became softer.

Nico sighed.

 _“You’re_ talking to our landlord,” Nico told him through clenched teeth, pointing out an accusing finger. "And _you're_ all taking care of it."

“Deal,” The three of them agreed in unison, their gleeful voices stepping over each other.

* * *

Game night was Nico’s favorite night of the week.

It was, by tradition, every Thursday. Jason had joined them up until his night class was scheduled for this night, and had shot down their offers to move the night because _he was just so happy they were all bonding and I love you all so much_ in which after that Nico left the room because Piper was getting stars in her eyes and Leo was getting that odd look on his face that meant disgusting trouble, so Nico had promptly vacated.

So, after that, Thursdays were given to the three of them to play videos and eat junk food and then later hide the evidence of said junk food in order to avoid Jason’s infamous sad-eyes. It was, honestly, a great bonding experience, not that Nico would ever tell Jason so directly.

But, it was also Piper’s favorite night of the week. Mostly, because of her pure, straightforward, ruthless brand of cheating. Or talent. Whatever.

“Losers have to get snacks,” She challenged, readjusting the controller in her hands, absolutely knowing who was most likely to be the winner. “Winner gets to stay behind and get a head start on smoking.”

“Deal,” they both agreed instantly despite this, looking at the screen with a challenge in their eyes. Neither of them could resist a challenge and minutes later they were staring down at their shot down characters, Piper’s laugh crackling alongside the grim music.

“I want snacks,” She told them, high amusement in her voice. “Lots and lots of snacks. And ice cream.”

“Fine,” Nico sighed, moving Churro from his lap to the couch cushion, and standing. As he did so, a sad _meow_ followed.

“It’s not fair,” Leo muttered, following Nico’s example to stand. “di Angelo didn’t even want to _keep_ Churro. Why does _he_ get to be her favorite?”

“It’s totally fair,” Nico reached down to pet down her furry ears, a small smile in place. “You guys are Jason’s favorite, therefore the cat’s love is mine.”

Piper gave them a look as she began rolling a blunt, “Get my favorites, especially the spicy lime chips!”

“‘Course,” Leo leaned down to brush a kiss on her angled up cheek. Nico had long ago stopped trying to understand their relationship and only picked up the cat once again to move her into a different room. When he returned, Leo was already waiting by the door, and he followed the other boy out into the parking lot. Thankfully, the other boy conceded easily on letting Nico drive — good, considering Leo’s lead foot — and by second nature, Nico took them to the nearest Stop N’Go.

Something he would later regret greatly, considering who was mostly on shift at the moment.

Nico gave Will a small wave as they walked in, the other boy brightening considerably which, yeah, he would _definitely_ be thinking about more later, and started knocking snacks into their shopping basket. Piper’s chips, of course, and Jason’s favorite kind of popcorn along with a box of ice cream bars. A few more snacks when they’d inevitably all get the munchies later on and went to find Leo, who, from the loud sounds that followed the boy everywhere he went, was by the heat lamp foods.

Leo was already shoving half a baked pretzel in his mouth, breaking off the rest to stuff into the small paper bag as he turned to Nico, his own array of items stacked in his arms. Among the shiny labels, Nico saw his own favorite kind of Pretzel Combos and felt something like warmth.

“Ready?” A spray of salt and crumbs came flying out with Leo’s words, which Nico wrinkling his nose in disgust. He shook his head and only lead the way to the counter, suddenly realizing that uh, maybe this was a bad idea.

“Hey,” Leo winked at Will, dropping the items between them. “So you’re Will, huh?”

Will gave him a polite smile as he began to scan the items, “Yes. And you are?”

“Leo Valdez, bad boy extraordinaire and expert in everything hot,” Leo’s grin was nearly filthy, “ask anyone.”

Will barely spared Leo a second look after a polite nod, turning instead to Nico as he lined up his own purchases next to Leo’s so they could pay together. Hades’s credit card was the true MVP getting him through college. Will looked over his lot of snacks and hummed, “No energy drinks. Good. For a second there, I thought you were trying to be their spokesperson purely by consumed product.”

Nico gave him a small laugh, “I mean, if anyone’s a representative of their company, it’s Will Solace, star employee of the Stop N’Go franchise.”

“Oh, no.” Will gave him a cheeky smile, “My modeling days are over. Now, I just want a simple life of scanning snacks and alloting gas.”

“Really?” Nico gave a noise of mock-surprise, “I wouldn’t have guessed. I could have sworn you were campaigning for an employee ad. Nationwide, of course.”

“Yeah, because my vest and badge are way too hot for my own good,” Will teased, “It’s the sketchers that really pull it off, I think.”

“Definitely the sneakers,” Nico gave him a sly grin in response, “without them you might as well be a nun. No one wants a nun as their advertising model.”  

“The Catholic Church, maybe?” Will gave him a questioning look, “I feel like that could work.”

Nico hung his head in mock shame, “You got me there. Without the sneakers, yes, you could definitely model for the Catholic Church, Forgive me for my mistake.”

“I think the higher-ups deal with mistakes,” Will ripped off his receipt and held it out with amused, dancing eyes. “But I’ll pass it on.”

“Thanks,” Nico grinned, both for the conversation and for the receipt. Leo, at his side, helped him take the bags and head for the exit.

Nico gave him a mock salute as he turned towards the doors, readjusting his grip on the plastic bags as he did so. Strangely, Leo had remained silent the entire second half of the conversation. As they approached the vehicle. Nico turned to look a the other boy in question.

And Leo looked absolutely delighted.

“What was _that?_ ” He was loudly demanding nearly the instance Nico had slammed the car door after himself. Nico should have _known._

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Nico instantly dismissed, starting up the car. He pulled out of the parking lot, ignoring the other boy beside him.

“Flirting!” Leo whipped a Slim Jim out to point at Nico accusingly, “You and check out guy were _flirting!”_

“We were _not,”_ Nico huffed out a breath. “We were _just_ talking.”

Leo gave him an obvious look. “Don’t be a Jason, now.”

Nico sighed, “I don’t even want to know what that means.”

Despite his words, Leo continued, of course.

“I mean, don’t be so freaking _oblivious.”_ Leo told him, “Early into our relationship, I was like, literally sucking his dick and his only response was _‘what are we?’_ like,” Leo rubbed his hand over his face, “I had addressed him as my boyfriend in public like, ten times at that point but he just thought we were really great guy pals.” He huffed out a breath, “And don’t even get me _started_ on when Piper joined the party. Jesus. We made a _powerpoint.”_

“Please never let me see that,” Nico would beg if he needed to.

“We flip through it together on our anniversary,” Leo shrugged, “nothing I can do about it, di Angelo. It has graphics. Spinning transitions. A wikihow video.”

“I hate that,” Nico complained, “I hate that I know that _so much.”_

“I mean, if you want more details, I could always go on more about the photo section -”

_“Oh my god, fuck you.”_

“Jar!”

“Jesus Christ,” Nico muttered, “I’m going broke from that fucking jar. And yes, I know, two dollars whatever.”

Leo had no sympathy, “You could always make Jason’s dreams come true and stop using such vulgar language, but I mean, feel free to continue funding the Grey Goose and grass budget, we all welcome it.”

“Three dollars,” Nico sighed as he checked his mirrors, a few honking cars in the distance edging him on. _“Fuck off.”_

Leo was undeterred, “When you see your boy next week,” Leo didn’t even pause for any noise of protest, one that Nico probably would have made but absolutely been lying about, “tell him I said hi. We’ll see if he even remembers me being there.”

“That would have to require you to be memorable,” Nico told the other boy, giving him a mocking sneer. As they drove away, he jerked up the radio dial to drown out the other boy’s noise of outrage. That, at least, was satisfying.

* * *

Nico flicked through the texted list, mostly just last minute grocery items they completely forgot about on their Tuesday trip. He cheerfully ignored the numerous winky faces Leo had followed up the text with, and instead dipped through the automatic doors, the high, powerful air conditioning sweeping over him in a moment.

Will, he realized with surprised and a bit of disappointment, wasn’t at the counter. Instead, some other teenage boy with bright colored hair and a cell phone in his hands was there, the same green vest in place. Nico was disappointed, but then also kind of relieved that Will didn’t, you know, _live_ in the gas station. It was getting a bit worrying.

Nico gathered everything off his list, slightly missing the few humorous comments Will would occasionally throw out and offer as Nico grabbed his things. At least this trip would be quick, if anything.

Nico didn’t bother with the pleasantries as he laid out his purchases, only nodding at the clerk in greeting. Yet, the clerk didn’t start to scan Nico’s items, probably distracted by the cell phone still in his hands. Nico gave him a questioning look, only to find the other boy already looking at him.

“You’re…” The boy — Mitchell, his nametag read — stared him down with narrowed eyes. Nico gave him a strange look, a bit of unease coming to him. 

“I’m?” Nico questioned.

Mitchell cocked his head to the side, thinking. “Do you know Will? He works here like, constantly? Blond, literal sunshine?” His eyes narrowed in thought. "You know him?"

“Oh,” Nico blinked in surprise, “Uh, yeah. I think we’re friends?” 

The suspicion was gone in an instant, replaced with something a bit more excited. “Yeah. Friends. Okay.” He began scanning Nico’s few items, grinning widely the entire time.

Nico gave the other boy a look, clearly unimpressed. “You know Will, I’m assuming?”

“Coworkers,” Mitchell answered with a gleeful grin, “I figured, from how Will talks about his frequent customer Nico, you must be him.”

Nico tried for nonchalance, “Will talks about me?”

Mitchell finished up scanning and bagging his items but paused to give Nico a sly grin. “Occasionally,” he finally said, smugness in his voice. “Why, don’t you?”

Nico pursed his lips, thinking to how Piper, Leo, and Jason soaked up Nico’s gas station trips like a soap opera, and settled for, “Occasionally.”

Mitchell smirked and held out his hand for Nico’s card, hanging limply from his fingers. Nico sighed, taking the card and receipt when the other boy was done, and wondered if either of them had anything else to say.

The automatic doors slid open as another customer came in — dark curls, looking like trouble — and Mitchell perked up noticeably.

“Hey Connor!” Mitchell called out before turning his grin back to Nico, “I have to follow him around and make sure he’s not shoplifting too much. Will’s not working tomorrow, just so you know. Don’t wanna waste your time or anything.”

Nico stared at him, unsure what to say, but Mitchell gave him no time to respond. Instead. He took off towards the aisles, an amused grin on his face, leaving Nico at the front of the store with a plastic bag hanging from his hand.

That was...interesting, he decided as he climbed back into the car. Very interesting.

* * *

It was nearing midnight, but somehow Nico wasn’t even a little bit surprised to see Will at the counter, his bright green vest in place, smiley face sticker on his nametag.

“Do you ever go home?” Nico asked, pushing himself up to sit on the end of the counter, snagging a juice from the container. He’d pay for it on his way out. It was probably totally against the rules, the counter sitting and the juice sipping, but the other boy made no move to correct Nico’s actions.

Will clicked his tongue, returning to the clipboard. “Usually, yes.” He paused, looking to Nico with sudden interest. “Why? You interested?”

Nico nearly choked on his juice, coughing as he brought the bottle down. “What?”

There was a beat of silence, Will staring him down, Nico wide-eyed back. After another second, Will seemed to make up his mind on something.

“Any plans for the rest of the night?” Will’s voice was a half-pitch lower than usual, his eyes dipping even lower as he dropped the clipboard to the counter, suddenly completely uninterested in doing stock. It was more attractive than it should have been.

Nico’s throat was dry, despite the juice he had just jugged. “Uh, no. Just gonna head back to my apartment.” His eyes flicked away, his voice careful, unsure but suspecting what the other boy was saying. “My roommates are out for the night, probably gonna put on some netflix. Hang out with Churro.”

Will hummed, his eyes briefly flickering away to the clock. “I get off in ten. Want some company?” His grin was almost flirtatious, “Other than your cat’s, of course.”

He swallowed, his hands tightening around his plastic bag. “I mean, all I’m gonna do is lay around.”

The other boy cracked a grin, “Sounds fun to me.” Will leaned on the counter, “ _Layin around_ with you.”

“Uh,” Nico was still processing everything. “Uh, you too. Yeah.”

Will’s grin only got bigger, and he glanced to the clock. “My cover will be here soon. How about you get the _care-a-mel,”_ His grin was promising, “and I’ll get the other thing?”

Nico, at least, put in an effort to be smoother than he was. “Yeah,” he grinned, “that sounds pretty good.”

Will hummed, turning away to start getting ready. “You’ve got some pulp on your chin, by the way.”

Nico hated the universe.

He wasn’t sure how serious Will was being with the caramel, but hey, it wasn’t like it would go waste in their apartment. He threw a few bills on the counter, enough to cover the bottle of sugar and his juice, and plucked it off the shelf. When he returned, and Will had returned from the back room, the bills were placed safety into the register, and Will was waiting by the door.

“So,” Will began as Nico made his way over, “my shift’s over now.”

Nico nodded, feeling a bit shaky and unsure as he came to a stop before them. At least, from how Will was shifting back and forth, he was feeling the same.

“I can take us back to my place,” he jammed a thumb over his shoulder. At his shifting weight, the double doors automatically flew open, and a brush of chilled night air rushed through. Nico shivered against it — and everything else.

Will only gave him a small smile in response, and took his hand without much warning. Nico squeezed back.

“Hey, so I never told you but -” Will’s voice was soft as he took a small step forward, “I think you’re my favorite customer.”

Nico made to look like he was thinking it over. “I think you’re probably my favorite clerk. Mitchell’s up there though. I mean, the way he bags my items? It’s a close call.”

Will made a mock offended noise, his hand leaving Nico’s but trailing up to Nico’s collar. After another moment, he jerked Nico’s shirt towards himself, pulling Nico himself along, and without much else, his lips were pressed firmly against Nico’s own.

Nico’s hand automatically came up to rest in Will’s curls, pulling him closer, and Will made a small, delicious sound as he did so. Nico pulled away, leaving the kiss chaste for now, and blinked at the boy — maybe with stars, probably in awe — and breathed out.

“Hm,” Will grinned in response, coming in for another quick kiss, more of a peck, like he was reminding himself of something. “You taste like orange juice.”

“Better than energy drinks,” Nico told him, pulling him out the double automatic doors and towards his parked car. The only other car there was for Will’s cover — a girl with bright green hair and a bored expression — with no other in sight. He wondered how Will had gotten to work and, vaguely, wondered if he’d be able to ask him tomorrow. He hoped he would.

They settled in the front seat, and Nico pulled the other boy in a final, lingering, much-too-dirty kiss that left them both breathless. Blinking himself back, he started up the car and forced it towards his apartment.

* * *

The next morning brought wonderfully aching muscles, a set of sheets set out for the washer, and a paper bag being thrown onto the table.

Piper paused in her breakfast, her toast with jam hovering close to her mouth as she went for a bite, and simply stared down at the bag, not fully processing it. She absolutely knew what they meant, but the mornings were also slow for everyone.

Leo, without pausing, pushed open the bag and squinted down in it, then up at Nico.

“di Angelo, you bought...doughnuts?” Leo blinked in confusion, “Isn’t that a Jason thing for when he -” He cut himself off only for Piper to gasp in realization.

“You - _you_ -”

Will peeked his face around the corner, smiling coyly at the other two, but making no effort to cover his bare chest. “Hey Neeks, you mind if I jump in your shower?”

Nico smirked at their faces, smiling over his shoulder at the other boy. “Go for it, babe.”

He grinned, brilliant, and disappeared back around the corner. A few moments later, the sound of the shower started up.

“Actually,” Nico stood, giving their dumbfounded faces a smug look. “I think I might go join him. If you’ll excuse me.”

He left them both sputtering at his back as he clicked the door shut behind him, and Will was already there waiting, shirtless and leaning against the door.

“Making trouble?” Will’s hands fell automatically to his waist, his mouth to Nico’s neck.

Nico leaned into the touch, “Me? Of course not.”

“Of course not,” Will muttered into his skin, “what was I thinking.”

Nico’s hand came up to the back of Will’s neck as the other boy continued with persistence at his neck. Nico was weak-kneed against the door now, leaning onto the wood for pure support. “We, uh -” He was already breathing much too heavily, “shower?”

Will lightly dug his teeth into the sensitive skin there one more time before pulling away, satisfaction on his face, “I agree. Shower.”

“Good, uh -” Nico forced his feet to move towards the bathroom, where Will had already let the water start to warm up. He shot a look over his shoulder, a teasing promise, and lead the other boy into the warm, humid room.

* * *

“Nice,” Nico shot the other boy a teasing look, gesturing towards the steamed up mirror. The water, having gone cold, had forced them from the small room, but not before the humid steam could cloud up the mirror. In the corner, Will had drawn a small heart with an even smaller _N_ inside. He was such a nerd, and from his coy grin, he _totally_ knew it.

Nico dressed quickly, throwing a few articles of Leo’s clothes towards the other boy, knowing they would probably fit Will better than anything in Nico’s own closet. Shutting the door behind him to let him change, Nico smirked at his roommates, Jason having joined in his absence, them all still gathered at the table.  
Piper was shaking her head, almost proud as she bit into a cinnamon curler. “I can’t believe it,” she said, “you beautiful mess, you did it.”

“You got the dick,” Leo, however, didn’t even bother hiding his pride. “I’m _so_ proud of you.”

“Of course he likes Nico,” Jason, of course, added. “Nico’s great, and Will’s lucky to be with him.”

Nico gave them all a dry look as he folded his arms over the remaining chair and grabbed a doughnut. “Thanks for the encouragement guys,” he took a bite, “also, harassing Will is forbidden starting now.”

Leo’s face dropped at least 3 moods, “What? But - but how are we going to get to know him?”

Nico gave him a look, “Like normal people?” He cut a look towards Piper, who was already suspiciously tapping away at her phone. “And _no_ social media stalking.”

Piper frowned, clicking off the screen and setting it off to the side.

Even Jason was frowning, “We weren’t planning on harassing him,” He politely ignored the guilty look Piper and Leo shared, continuing on. “But I do think we should get to know him better, especially if he’s going to be hanging around here.” In one moment to the next, his face lit up. At his side, Piper was nearly swooning.

Nico sighed, already knowing the question probably wasn’t going to end well for him. “What?”

Jason beamed, “Family. Dinner.”

“No.”

“Nico,” his voice was breathless, “Will _has_ to meet your family.”

“Will doesn’t have to do anything,” Nico shot him a bored look, “and he absolutely _does not_ need to meet my family. Especially considering _we’re not even dating yet.”_

“I wasn’t dating Jason when I met the fam,” Leo pointed out.

Nico couldn’t help but roll his eyes, “You were Hazel’s best friend first, of course you weren’t dating him. Fifth graders don’t exactly have boyfriends you bring home to the family.”

“Still,” Jason was still grinning, and at least Piper seemed to be blinking herself back to reality after the force of it hitting her. “I think it’s important that Will does.”

“Does what?” Because, of course, Will asked as he walked into the room, an easy grin on his face as he ran a towel through his hair. It was stupidly attractive.

Jason shot him a triumphant grin as he jumped to explain, “We were just talking,” he continued on before Nico could begin to interject, “and we’re having a family dinner next week that we thought would be nice to have you at.”

“Oh,” Will, at least, looked pleasantly surprised. “That sounds nice! I mean, I’m probably scheduled to work, but I can always switch with someone.” He turned and gave Nico an amused look, probably reading the emotion clear on his face. “Text me when it is, okay? I can ask Mitchell.”

“I don’t have your number,” Nico pointed out, matching his grin with a slight one in return.

“Yeah you do,” Will tossed Nico’s smartphone over, smug as Nico caught it easily. “You shouldn’t leave your phone unprotected, you know. Not even a password?”

This time, Nico cut an annoyed glance towards Leo. “Not like it would stop anyone in this apartment.”

Leo only nodded, “It’s true.” Jason and Piper, annoyingly, looked a bit proud at that. Jerks.

Will grinned in amusement, something that probably dangerous to Nico’s continued sanity, and turned back towards the bedroom, most likely to hang the towel back on the rack to dry. Doing so, he paused and turned slightly towards the living room.

“Your cat!” He gasped happily, dropping to his knees in front of the couch cushion where Churro was loafed nicely. Gently, Will let Churro inspect his hand for a moment before running a gentle hand over her soft ears.  

Gods, did Nico hate his stupid heart. It was going nearly crazy at the sight. Nico didn’t even _like_ cats (although, he _was_ Churro’s favorite, which helped a bit if he considered it) but he _did_ like the other boy, and that at least seemed to be enough to race his heart, color his cheeks. He stuffed half the doughnut in his mouth, hoping for a distraction to force the redness away. Both Leo and Piper watched the exchange with dancing eyes, and Jason, in turn, looked to the side to keep a careful eye on Churro.

There was a high gasp from Will and he bent over to examine the cat with now excited eyes. “You didn’t say your cat was _pregnant!”_

Everyone, nearly in sync, froze at the words.

“What....” Nico coughed around his mouthful of doughnut, swallowing quickly. _“What_ did you just say?”

Will cocked his head to the side, his sunshine curls falling to one said, and gave him a curious look, his hand still rubbing the cat’s furry head. “You didn’t tell me she’s pregnant! She’s, what,” Will peered down at her, “pretty far along, I would say.”

“Oh my god,” Jason was the first one to speak up, and when Nico looked over, he was nearly shaking. “We’re gonna have _kittens.”_

“No,” Nico said out loud, purely in denial. _“No.”_

“Did you really think she was this fat?” Will’s voice was dripping in amusement, “Like, this is an unhealthy level of cat fat. Didn’t you take her to the vet?”

They shared a look with each other. “We...meant to,” Leo started, “but, I mean, she seemed healthy enough. And we like checked her for a bunch of stuff.”

“But not kittens,” Will gave Churro another careful pet, “you should really take her as soon as possible.”

Jason stood, his excitement turning to near worry in a second. “I’m calling right now,” he promised them all, much too serious. “Oh gods, kittens. _Kittens._ I’m texting Hades right after.”

“He’d prefer if you’d call,” Nico reminded him, “if not, he’ll start to complain that he’s _forgetting the sound of our voices_ , or something ridiculous like that.”

Jason nodded, a grave expression in place, before bolting off in the direction of their bedroom. Although, of course, not without pressing a quick kiss to Churro’s head.

_Kittens._

He couldn’t deal with this today.

He shoved down the rest of his doughnut and fixed up a quick cup of coffee, taking that down in nearly equal speed. It was incredibly impressive, although from what his roommates — his friends — had told him, it was nearly as horrifying to see him down food at the speed in which he did. Everyone had their own talents.

“Yo, di Angelo,” Leo shook the cereal box at him to grab his attention, “Pipes ate the rest of the Cap’n Crunch. You gonna run to the Stop N’Go?” Leo gave him a curious look, his eyes flickering to the living room for a moment before returning. “Are you still volunteering for Stop N’Go runs or?”

Nico looked to Will, still cooing over Churro, now cross-legged on the living room carpet. Piper had joined him in the meantime, probably trying to get some info on the other boy. She, his roommates all together, were ridiculous. In the distance, he could hear Jason speaking loud and excited on the phone. Leo was still waiting for an answer.

“Yeah,” he finally answered, pulling out his phone to start making a list. They’d have to keep the magic alive somehow, and if visiting Will every other day at work was what did it, so be it. Nico would happily make the sacrifice. In the living room, Will caught his eye. Maybe he knew what they were saying, or maybe he was responding to something Piper had said, or maybe, just _maybe_ , he was using that perfect, bright grin because he just felt that happy to see Nico standing there, looking back at him.

And just maybe, Nico felt the same.

**Author's Note:**

> YEET IT DONE  
> i've been working on this off & on since like, last year. let me know if you enjoyed! i haven't written solangelo in forever and I had so much fun with this.  
> also while I was writing this i finally started to understand why some people ship leo/nico. like. wow. there's some potential here. if will hadn't come around in this au, im pretty sure leo would have tried for that.  
> i was editing this and tbh i got lowkey rental love vibes wow what a wild ride  
> i need validation pls comment ilysm  
> follow me on tumblr at rosyredlipstick for 2am ask prompts and rants about my ocs xoxo


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